Cusco --> The Highest Commercially Navigable Lake in the World
Dave and I enjoyed our 1st row panoramic views from the top floor of a 2 story bus en route from Cusco to Puno. Apparently (what I gleaned from a tour group that was sitting behind us on the bus) is the high plateau on the way to Lago Titicaca is an area where three mountain ranges join. The scenery was really spectacular along the way...high snow-capped peaks, grazing alpacas, wide open spaces, and stretches of nothing for hours. As we descended into Puno, the lake looked immense...but we were seeing only a snippit of the entire lake. Puno is a bit of a ramshakle town but is also rich in culture history and is said to be the folkloric capital of Perú.
Panoramic Views from Isla Taquile, Lago Titicaca, Perú
The town steeply surrounds the lake like an amphitheater and it´s entirely deceiving that you are at high altitude...walking up the streets to get home and huffing and puffing is common. Yes...the name of the lake is all too fun to say, but it`s origins are from the indigenous languages of Quechua and Aymara and refer to the shape and color of the lake. Dave was hoping to get a solid picture next to a sign of LAKE TITICACA, but alas, we didn`t find one.
The lake itself sits at an elevation of 12,500 ft and lies in both Perú and Bolivia. Five major river systems feed into the lake and only one runs out...this takes care of about 10% of the water balance, but the lake is nearly closed. The other 90% is taken care of by evaporation, transpiration, and intense winds that rip along the lake. During the winter time when the winds are high, waves of 8-10 feet can occur in the lake, halting all boat transfers.
Dave and I embarked on our first official "tour" of the trip in Titicaca. As reluctant as we were to play follow the leader and sit and listen, we enjoyed our time and learned way more than we would have otherwise. +Plus, it´s always good people watching and gaper spotting+ The first stop on our all-day tour were the floating islands of Uros. The indigenous Aymara people of Peru and Bolivia used these islands in the past in a defensive position because they could be moved. They are made of 100000s of reeds piled on top of another and they actually are just floating in the somewhat shallow parts of the lake. It feels like walking on a mattress on the islands. A few times, I was wondering if I might fall through on some of the really squishy parts. The 5 families on the islands shelled out a canned 15 minute speech about how the islands were constructed, let us roam around, and then bombarded us with the ever-pleasant "now you need to buy all of our artisan handicrafts." To put it a tiny bit more in perspective, one of the tiny huts on the island had a small solar panel outside of the door to their hut and a 12-ish inch tv inside. Hmmmm... When they were authentic...100s of years ago, they probably would have been a bit more interesting to visit. Still unbelievable though that islands can be made out of reeds and floating on the water (anchored down) in the lake.
Boarded back into the boat...set off for the island of Taquile. Two hours later we arrived at this beautiful island in the middle of the huge lake! Now this was what we came here to see! It was a beautiful day and we could see for miles and miles the expanse of the lake and pristine blue skies. Taquile and the other islands are catered primarily toward tourism but are still interesting and unique. They were inhabited by the Incan people during their reign in Perú and this is evidenced all over the islands by their extensive use of agricultural terracing--Incans were master farmers. They have very specific cultural traditions and are tight-knit communities. All of the people of Taquile live by the ancient Incan principles of don´t steal, don´t lie, and don´t be lazy. Good rules! There are no automobiles and very little electricity (only a few solar panels). One thing that I thought was particularly interesting is that within the 2,200 inhabitants, they have started to have problems with unintentional inbreeding and birth defects on the island because they do not marry outside of their community. We stopped and had lunch, learned about the people of the island, and took about a 45 minute walk up and over to the other side to get to our boat. Three hours later we turned up in Puno...long but good day!
Cute little punkin´ in Isla Taquile. The children wear red hats and they put the tassle to the back. When they turn 12 or 13 they move the tassle to the right, signifying that they are single and available. If they have a boyfriend or girlfriend, they put the tassle to the left. Once people are married, they wear white caps.
Dave and I enjoyed our 1st row panoramic views from the top floor of a 2 story bus en route from Cusco to Puno. Apparently (what I gleaned from a tour group that was sitting behind us on the bus) is the high plateau on the way to Lago Titicaca is an area where three mountain ranges join. The scenery was really spectacular along the way...high snow-capped peaks, grazing alpacas, wide open spaces, and stretches of nothing for hours. As we descended into Puno, the lake looked immense...but we were seeing only a snippit of the entire lake. Puno is a bit of a ramshakle town but is also rich in culture history and is said to be the folkloric capital of Perú.
Panoramic Views from Isla Taquile, Lago Titicaca, PerúThe town steeply surrounds the lake like an amphitheater and it´s entirely deceiving that you are at high altitude...walking up the streets to get home and huffing and puffing is common. Yes...the name of the lake is all too fun to say, but it`s origins are from the indigenous languages of Quechua and Aymara and refer to the shape and color of the lake. Dave was hoping to get a solid picture next to a sign of LAKE TITICACA, but alas, we didn`t find one.
The lake itself sits at an elevation of 12,500 ft and lies in both Perú and Bolivia. Five major river systems feed into the lake and only one runs out...this takes care of about 10% of the water balance, but the lake is nearly closed. The other 90% is taken care of by evaporation, transpiration, and intense winds that rip along the lake. During the winter time when the winds are high, waves of 8-10 feet can occur in the lake, halting all boat transfers.
Dave and I embarked on our first official "tour" of the trip in Titicaca. As reluctant as we were to play follow the leader and sit and listen, we enjoyed our time and learned way more than we would have otherwise. +Plus, it´s always good people watching and gaper spotting+ The first stop on our all-day tour were the floating islands of Uros. The indigenous Aymara people of Peru and Bolivia used these islands in the past in a defensive position because they could be moved. They are made of 100000s of reeds piled on top of another and they actually are just floating in the somewhat shallow parts of the lake. It feels like walking on a mattress on the islands. A few times, I was wondering if I might fall through on some of the really squishy parts. The 5 families on the islands shelled out a canned 15 minute speech about how the islands were constructed, let us roam around, and then bombarded us with the ever-pleasant "now you need to buy all of our artisan handicrafts." To put it a tiny bit more in perspective, one of the tiny huts on the island had a small solar panel outside of the door to their hut and a 12-ish inch tv inside. Hmmmm... When they were authentic...100s of years ago, they probably would have been a bit more interesting to visit. Still unbelievable though that islands can be made out of reeds and floating on the water (anchored down) in the lake. 
Aymara Women, bidding us farewell. Click on the picture to get a close up of the woman in red.
Women of the Islas Uros. Preparing tapestries to sell.
Boarded back into the boat...set off for the island of Taquile. Two hours later we arrived at this beautiful island in the middle of the huge lake! Now this was what we came here to see! It was a beautiful day and we could see for miles and miles the expanse of the lake and pristine blue skies. Taquile and the other islands are catered primarily toward tourism but are still interesting and unique. They were inhabited by the Incan people during their reign in Perú and this is evidenced all over the islands by their extensive use of agricultural terracing--Incans were master farmers. They have very specific cultural traditions and are tight-knit communities. All of the people of Taquile live by the ancient Incan principles of don´t steal, don´t lie, and don´t be lazy. Good rules! There are no automobiles and very little electricity (only a few solar panels). One thing that I thought was particularly interesting is that within the 2,200 inhabitants, they have started to have problems with unintentional inbreeding and birth defects on the island because they do not marry outside of their community. We stopped and had lunch, learned about the people of the island, and took about a 45 minute walk up and over to the other side to get to our boat. Three hours later we turned up in Puno...long but good day! 
Isla Taquile..beautiful day
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